I was in active addiction for my whole adult life until about four years ago. The support I’ve received has helped me to continue on a path to success. This is the story of my journey to recovery.

I was emancipated at the age of 16. After more than 20 years of anti-social behavior and a decade in prison for various charges, I was released in 2014.

Eleven days after I was released, I met Chrystal. We were married in 2016 and our son was born in 2017.

In 2019, he was taken from us by Child Protective Services (CPS). We wanted to turn things around–get him back or have him placed with a member of our family. We were working, and in counseling—doing Medication-Assisted Treatment, making an effort to meet the CPS requirements. It was a losing battle.

Then, the COVID pandemic hit.

Thankfully, we had unemployment checks, but we were not allowed parental visits. There were no services, we stopped Medication-Assisted Treatment, we were running out of housing options and it was the Wild West in the streets. In September of 2020 we were at the wrong place at the wrong time and got arrested.

We found out we were pregnant with our daughter while in jail. Chrystal went to a rehabilitation program in Bangor where they let mothers have their kids. I remained in jail fighting for a chance at rehab instead of prison. I was told I was a lost cause, and treated that way.

I was on the jail phone for our daughter’s birth. DHHS took her immediately after she was born. I was sent to rehab soon after. Chrystal’s bail conditions were to have no contact with me, so after rehab we went to separate sober houses in Bangor to start cleaning up the mess.

We had no hope of getting the kids back.

But…we did. With help from Pathways of Hope and Crossroads case managers, we worked our way up to trial placement. Maine Housing accepted us and set us up with ReStart, a family self-sufficiency program.

From there, I connected with New Ventures Maine and took the My Money Works class. I was able to fix my credit; I purchased a newer, safe, reliable minivan with the help of a Family Development Account, for which NVME walked me through the process; and, we found a nice house to rent that is perfect!

I have a good job working in maintenance for Schlotterbeck & Foss despite my record and holes in my resume. I’ve learned to believe in myself, how to budget and work through the credit system, and all about assets and liabilities (as well as how NOT to do things—the best lessons ever!).

I never could have come this far on my own. Our latest news is that I received my Boiler Operators Permit in May of 2024. We’ve been blessed beyond words. And we couldn’t be happier, healthier or more grateful!